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In this overview of non-vocational adult education and the training of its professionals we seek to provide a map of existing provision through secondary analysis of existing data. The territory is a complex one with a range of providers and considerable blurring of the vocational and non-vocational divide. Further, because of devolution within the four countries of the UK, there are certain relatively minor differences in the four administrations. Where these are of some significance, they are noted, but in general the specific focus is on England. Our analysis is based on data gathered as part of the Europe-wide ALPINE survey. Our secondary data are augmented by personal interviews with key informants representing different parts of the adult education sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a survey review of series of graded readers in English that are published in Great Britain, Europe and the U.S. Graded readers are books written for learners of English, which are categorized into two types: the rewrite and the simple original. This review, which covers 42 series containing 2,051 titles, was made possible due to the library and database of graded readers maintained by the Edinburgh Project on Extensive Reading (EPER). The effect of the changing cultural and educational climate on graded readers is also discussed.

Collecting feedback from students on their experiences of higher education has become one of the central pillars of the quality process. Many surveys are being carried out but it is not always clear how fit for purpose they are. This paper compares the fitness for purpose of a nation-wide survey and a tailor-made institutional survey. The National Student Survey, recently introduced in the UK, aims to provide information for prospective students and address public accountability, whereas the Student Satisfaction Approach is designed primarily to inform internal quality improvement processes but also to supply some information to prospective students. The two surveys are also very different in content and presentation of results. The two surveys are not interchangeable in use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although HRM professionalism in terms of the competence of individual HR practitioners receives considerable attention, the collective professional behaviour of HR departments in organizations is more frequently overlooked. This paper, based on Europe-wide survey data, attempts to bridge this gap in our understanding by examining HR department professionalism in terms of strategic involvement in corporate activities. Findings for the UK indicate that HR departments as a whole demonstrate limited professional behaviour and that this situation has remained largely stable over the last decade. However, variations between national contexts are notable. A key observation is the consistently significant positive correlation in the UK between board membership and the department's level of strategic involvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the problems on user surveys in external assessments carried out in higher education in Europe. Influence of user surveys on higher education institutions; Emphasis on the problems of limited use of user surveys; Relevance of higher education to stakeholders.

The article presents the author's insights on the national news story that was not told regarding Japan. The author says that there has been work that examines Australian perceptions of Japan and the role of the media as information purveyors. She states that general survey of foreign affairs coverage found that the majority of Australians depended on media. She adds that failure to readdress ignorance of Japan was product of the focused attention of Australia on Great Britain and Europe.

There is extensive evidence to suggest that social support improves breastfeeding outcomes. Building on this evidence-base, public health services and interventions aiming to improve breastfeeding rates have primarily targeted informational and emotional support to mothers, reflecting an individual behaviour-change approach. However, mothers exist within a wider social network, and the characteristics of their broader support networks may be an important predictor of breastfeeding outcomes. Here we explore the typologies of postnatal support for mothers in the UK; a population with one of the lowest breastfeeding rates in Europe. Using retrospective data from an online survey (data collection period December 2017 - February 2018), we carry out a latent class regression (n = 432) to identify "clusters" of postnatal support in our data. Mothers in our sample were most likely to report receiving practical and emotional support from partners and maternal grandmothers, and breastfeeding information from health professionals. We identify three distinct typologies of postnatal support: 1) Extensive support, where mothers received support from a wide range of supporters including partners, maternal grandmothers, friends and health professionals, but mothers were the only ones to feed the infant; 2) Family support, where mothers received support from partners and maternal grandmothers, including with infant feeding, but less likely to receive support from health professionals; and 3) Low support, where mothers primarily received support from partners. 94% of women with extensive support were predicted to be breastfeeding at two months, followed by 48% of mothers in the low support group, and 13% in the family support group. Our findings highlight the complexities of family support and its potential impact on breastfeeding, as well as the significance of professional support. Overall, our results hint at the potential value for health professionals to engage with wider family in order to achieve extensive support for mothers. We identify three types of postnatal support networks in our sample of UK mothers. "Extensive support" mothers were supported by family, friends and professionals. "Family support" mothers were mainly supported by family; less so by professionals. "Low support" mothers reported lower support across all potential supporters. Mothers who breastfed for > two months were most likely to report extensive support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Migraine is a distinct neurological disease that imposes a significant burden on patients, society, and the healthcare system. This study aimed to characterize the incremental burden of migraine in individuals who suffer from ≥4 monthly headache days (MHDs) by examining health-related quality of life (HRQoL), impairments to work productivity and daily activities, and healthcare resource utilization (HRU) in the EU5 (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom).Methods: This retrospective cross-sectional study used data from the 2016 National Health and Wellness Survey (NHWS; N = 80,600). Short-Form 36-Item Health Survey, version 2 (SF-36v2) physical and mental component summary scores (PCS and MCS), Short-form-6D (SF-6D), and EuroQoL (EQ-5D), impairments to work productivity and daily activities (Work Productivity and Activity Impairment Questionnaire (WPAI), and HRU were compared between migraine respondents suffering from ≥4 MHDs (n = 218) and non-migraine controls (n = 218) by propensity score matching using sociodemographic characteristics. Chi-square, T-tests, and Mann-Whitney tests were performed to determine significant differences between the groups after propensity score matching.Results: HRQoL was lower in migraine individuals suffering from ≥4 MHDs compared with non-migraine controls, with reduced SF-36v2 PCS (46.00 vs 50.51) and MCS (37.69 vs 44.82), SF-6D health state utility score (0.62 vs 0.71), and EQ-5D score (0.68 vs 0.81) (for all, p < 0.001). Respondents with migraine suffering from ≥4 MHDs also reported higher levels of absenteeism from work (14.43% vs 9.46%; p = 0.001), presenteeism (35.52% vs 20.97%), overall work impairment (38.70% vs 23.27%), and activity impairment (44.17% vs 27.75%) than non-migraine controls (for all, p < 0.001). Additionally, HRU was significantly higher for individuals with ≥4 MHDs compared to their matched controls. Consistently, migraine subgroups (4-7 MHDs, 8-14 MHDs and CM) had lower HRQoL, greater overall work and activity impairment, and higher HRU compared to non-migraine controls.Conclusions: Migraine of ≥4 MHDs was associated with poorer HRQoL, greater work productivity loss, and higher HRU compared with non-migraine controls. The findings of the study suggest that an unmet need exists among individuals suffering from ≥4 MHDs in the EU5 suggesting the need for effective prophylactic treatments to lessen the humanistic and economic burden of migraine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article informs about assessing the value of environmental prevention programmes in reducing driving under the influence (DUI) among college students. There is increasing concern, particularly in Europe, at the high levels of drinking in young people of college age. This level is not only high, but is on the increase. A recent survey (2004) by the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs focused on 35 countries. The survey, which looked at the habits of teenagers, found 26% of boys and 29% of girls in Great Britain had indulged in binge drinking at least three times in the previous month. For the purposes of the study, binge drinking was classed as having more than five alcoholic drinks in a row. Correspondingly high levels of drinking were found in Central European and Nordic countries. In the United States and elsewhere, this high level of drinking has been associated with increased levels of driving after drinking alcohol. A more recent study found positive relationships between modes of drinking behaviours and DUI of alcohol. In that study, heavy episodic drinking, frequency of drinking, variance of drinking and drinks per occasion all predicted DUI.

This article reports that a survey conducted across Europe has shown that, despite their speed and directness, email messages can lead to business delays, misunderstandings and damage to commercial and personal relationships. The survey commissioned by communications company palmOne polled 750 senior, middle and junior managers in Germany, France, Italy, Spain and Great Britain and found widespread dissatisfaction with the way emails are used for business communication. Of those questioned, 61% said that business decisions are frequently delayed due to a lack of response to emails.

Focuses on a survey conducted in Great Britain and Europe by online careers site Monster about bad management. Causes of management anger.

Preliminary results of a study conducted by the U.S.-based Price Waterhouse & Co. show that quality initiatives are not failing but succeeding. The study finds that more than 70 per cent of organizations believe that their quality initiatives are successful. The study--"A Program to Understand Leading Practices in Business Survival and Excellence,"--shows that those organizations that have been actively implementing quality initiatives for more than two years are more likely to have "very successful" initiatives than those that have had programmes for less than two years. The international study generated responses from more than 1700 organizations in the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Europe, and China in all major industries.

This article assesses the role of women employees in overseas operations. A survey of 70 U.S. multinational corporations reveals that only 5 percent of their employees on overseas assignments are females. Michael F. Tucker, senior vice-president and head of a consulting firm's international division, said that if American corporations are going to be successful in the increasingly competitive global business environment, they cannot afford to overlook the increasing number of qualified females available for overseas duty. Seven out of ten companies said there were no advantages in sending female employees overseas as opposed to male employees. Their arguments were based on the local cultural biases against women in certain. countries, thus limiting their mobility; lack of technically qualified females; absence of interest on the part of females in overseas duty; the problem of accompanying male spouses; and the male-dominated management climate in the company. Currently, the majority of female expatriates are assigned to Europe, and close to half of these are sent to Great Britain.